


Salvaging Clint

by PenPatronusAooO



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), BAMF Laura Barton, Bromance, Clint Barton Angst, Clint Feels, Clint and Laura Barton's Family, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Epic Bromance, F/M, Family, Friendship, Hurt Clint, Hurt Clint Barton, Hurt/Comfort, Male Friendship, PenPatronus, PenPatronusAooO, Protective Steve, Protective Steve Rogers, Steve Feels, Team Feels, Team as Family, Tony Feels, Whump, worried steve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-19
Updated: 2016-04-19
Packaged: 2018-06-03 04:34:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6596836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PenPatronusAooO/pseuds/PenPatronusAooO
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At the Barton farm, Steve and Laura talk about how Clint got injured (at the beginning of 'Age of Ultron'). </p><p>Later, in Sokovia, Cap takes care of the wounded Clint on the lifeboat. </p><p>STORY COMPLETE!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Salvaging Clint

**Author's Note:**

> Originally published as part 3 of "Salvage" on FFnet.

THE BARTON FARM

“Don’t take from my pile,” Tony Stark called as he marched towards the barn. 

Laura Barton cocked her head to the side. “That sounds like something my son would say,” she chuckled.

Steve snorted. “Tony Stark can be a child sometimes.” He plunged his ax through another log. 

“You know what I see?” Laura turned to watch Stark disappear through the door. “I see a man who is very afraid,” she said. “People take risks when they’re scared. Especially when they’re afraid for the people they love.” 

Steve hesitated mid-swing. Startled blue eyes went to the barn. Muscles in his jaw and neck twitched. A minute passed before his attention returned to Laura. “Thank you again for letting us…visit,” he said. “I hope we’re not intruding too much.” 

“You’ve certainly earned your keep. You’ve already done more work than my kids and I can do in a weekend,” Laura said, gesturing at all of the split wood. “I hope you don’t feel obligated. Maybe you should rest? Clint said you guys have been through a lot.” 

Cap offered her a small smile. “This is just the therapy I need right now, Mrs. Barton.” 

“Laura,” she corrected politely. 

“Laura.” Cap nodded at the farm. “If there’s anything I can do while I’m here, please, let me know.” 

Laura studied him. “Captain Rogers—”

“Steve.” 

“Steve.” Laura braided her fingers around her stomach. “Clint and Nat tell me about their adventures. Not everything—I know that I just hear the watered down versions. But I know that you’ve saved their lives a dozen times. You’ve already done more for me than you could ever know.” 

Steve shouldered the ax. “They’ve saved me. I don’t…I’ve lost track of how many times they’ve saved me.” Cap let the ax head fall to the ground. He braced both hands on the shaft and leaned into it. “I hope you know that Barton is a valued member of this team. Natasha likes to joke that we don’t need him but the truth is…” Cap stared down at his boots. “It’s an honor. Truly. He’s a good man.” 

“If half of what Clint has told me about you is true…” Laura bit her bottom lip. “Maybe this is odd, but, can I give you a hug?” 

Laura Barton didn’t wait for an answer. She stepped forwards, wrapped her arms tight around Steve’s midsection, pressed her cheek against his chest, and squeezed. He tensed and held his elbows up and out like he was trying to keep them above water. But then he relaxed, let the ax fall to the grass, and set his arms around her shoulders. “You, uh…” Steve cleared his throat. “You hug like a mother.” 

Laura took a step back and smiled up at him. “Sometimes even a super-soldier needs a mother’s hug.” Steve rubbed his arms and averted his gaze. Laura noticed that he denied nothing. 

A high-pitched giggle from the porch. Clint was giving his daughter a piggyback ride. “Barton took a hit in the field last week,” Steve suddenly remembered. “I’m…I’m sorry,” he said to Laura. “It wrecks me when anyone on the team gets hurt. I hope you know how seriously I take their safety. I was in the next sector when—” 

Laura held her palms up. The gesture stopped Steve’s downhill motion and he took a deep breath. “It’s all right,” she assured him. “He’s alive. That’s what matters.” Laura pivoted and watched as her husband wrestled with their son, who was banging his fists against his chest and growling like the Hulk. “Getting shot doesn’t really faze him,” she said quietly, hands back on her stomach. “Not after what Loki did to him. Nothing compares to that.” 

Steve folded his arms against his chest and wondered, “He’s still healing from that, isn’t he?” 

“Clint only kills when he absolutely has to. Loki forced him to kill. To kill men and women he went to the academy with, went on missions with…Forced him to kill his friends.” Laura’s nostrils flared. “Phil died. And then S.H.I.E.L.D. fell. Clint found out that some of his oldest friends were Hydra…” Laura shook her head. Water hovered in her eyes when she said, “I’m just so very grateful that he has this team, Steve. I don’t know what he would do if he didn’t have the Avengers.” 

As Steve watched Clint play with his children, an emotion he couldn’t define caused pressure in his chest. “We’re the ones who are lucky to have him. He sees things that the rest of us don’t. We have all of this technology at our disposal but nobody can read a situation like he can.” Steve shook his head. “We might have some rough days coming, Laura, but I promise—I SWEAR—I swear I’ll keep him safe.” 

Laura gave him a patient smile. She reached out, and he marveled at how petite and warm her hand was in his. “You’ll try,” she said softly, and Steve sensed a deep, almost debilitating sadness in her. He opened his mouth to promise her again, to promise MORE, maybe to insist that Clint stay on the sidelines, but she squeezed his hand, summoned a confident smile and said, “I just made a pitcher of lemonade. Squeezed the lemons myself.” 

Cap perked up. “I haven’t had lemonade since I was a kid.” 

Laura chuckled. “You haven’t had lemonade in eighty years?” She motioned for him to follow her into the farmhouse. “Come on.” 

\----------

SOKOVIA

Déjà vu, Steve thought. 

The last time the world was ending, he was on the ground looking up at an explosion that probably took out Tony Stark. This time he was in the air looking down from the lifeboat as Sokovia detonated. He scanned the sky for any sign of Thor’s red cape or Iron Man’s armor, but there was too much debris to see anything clearly. Cap tapped his earpiece but heard nothing but static. “Stark, report!” he barked. “Thor, come in!” A minute went by. Another followed it. He tried again. “Tony…?” 

Movement in his peripherals. The Vision landed on the deck with Wanda Maximoff in his arms. “My brother?” she squeaked. Cap started to give her the bad news but she shook her head—she already knew. “Where is he?” Steve pointed, and Wanda rushed to her brother’s body, knelt on the deck, and wept into his hair. 

Cap turned to the Vision. “T-the rest of my t-team,” he stuttered. Fear trickled down his spine like icy water. “I didn’t see if they made it…Natasha? B-Banner?” 

“I will look for them,” Vision promised. “After I make sure that none of Ultron’s soldiers survived.” 

“Yeah. Right. Good.” Steve wiped his sweaty brow with a dirty forearm. “Thank you.” Vision flew off. A shadow fell over the lifeboat as the ship neared the Helicarrier. They were almost home. 

Wanda’s sobs caught his attention. Steve jogged over to her. He briefly considered putting a hand on her shoulder or offering some platitude he knew she probably wouldn’t want to hear. That was when he saw the blood. A pool was forming on Pietro’s left, but Cap knew that it couldn’t be coming from him—not if his heart wasn’t pumping. 

Dread hit Cap like the Hulk’s fist. The blood was dripping from the bench above Pietro’s body. From Clint. 

“SHIT.” 

Steve leapt over Pietro and knelt beside the bench. One of Ultron’s blasts from the Quinjet nicked the right side of Clint’s torso. It was the same spot—the exact same damn place that laser hit Barton in the woods less than a week before. 

Steve shook his teammate’s shoulders. “Clint? Barton!” 

Barton started awake. Dazed eyes blinked too slowly. “Cap?” Clint squinted at him. “What happened? What’s…Where’s…The city. What happened to the city?” he slurred. 

Steve looked around for a medic. “Stark blew it up,” he said. “It’s over. We won.” 

“Oh.” Clint frowned. He rubbed his eyes, which just added to the grime in them. “But what about…What happened to the city?” 

Steve froze. He heard the ragged edges in Clint’s breaths. His skin was almost as pale as Pietro’s. “Barton, stay with me.” 

“Think I might be bleeding…” Clint’s entire body deflated. Although his irises were aimed at Cap, he seemed to be looking at something far, far away. 

“Here.” Something bumped Steve’s shoulder. Wanda rolled up her coat and handed it to him. 

Cap nodded his thanks and pressed the fabric against Barton’s wound. “Stay awake, Clint,” Steve ordered. His voice squeaked like a pubescent boy’s. “Barton, look at me—look at me!” 

Clint tried to obey. He could only keep one eye open at a time, and only halfway. “Tired…” he confessed. 

The lifeboat hovered into the Helicarrier’s cargo bay. Survivors started to move. Motion and bodies blocked the medics from seeing Cap’s waving arm. Fear threatened to overwhelm Steve completely. Where was Natasha? Where was Bruce? He didn’t know if Tony and Thor survived. Stark said that they might not walk away…And Barton was bleeding to death. Bleeding to death right in front of him. Laura’s sad face popped into his mind.

“Dammit!” Steve smacked Barton’s cheek twice. “Clint, I promised your wife that I’d keep you safe. I promised you’d be ok—I promised! Stay awake, Barton. Stay awake for Laura.” 

Heavy eyelids drifted shut. Clint’s lips parted, stilled. 

Water overflowed from Cap’s eyes. His voice broke in half. “CLINT!” 

“I’m here.” Words made of barely more than breath, but they were there. “I’m here, Cap,” Clint whispered. One corner of his mouth twitched in an almost-smile. “You’ll keep your promise…I promise.” 

The End


End file.
